Using 190sx in salt water

[Peter simon]

I bought my 2019 190SX in October 2018. We have been to the Florida Keys and Ft Myers area a few times and taken the boat. We either keep it on the trailer or rent a house with a lift. Since covid we have been working from home and taking more 2 week vacations where we work part time and take the boat.

Normally the boat is trailered to fresh water.

At what point do I need to worry about changing the anode to a salt water compatible one? It looks like just the one off the drive so changing would not be a big deal. Is it necessary for 2 weeks at a time a couple times a year?

 

[fatboyroy]

Change it and not worry about it anymore. Simple and not costly upgrade.

 

[ScottS]

There is also an anode on the engine, see item number 10 on the schematic:

https://www.partzilla.com/catalog/yamaha/boat/2019/sx190-tx1800bu-2019/crankcase

If you do decide to switch for saltwater use, helpful info on the correct metal for your anode:

Material	Saltwater	Brackish Water	Freshwater
Zinc	√
Aluminum	√	√
Magnesium			√

Helpful post showing changing the anode on I believe the same engine:

https://jetboaters.net/threads/replacing-engine-and-jet-pump-anodes.10276/

 

[Steve73]

How do I know if my anode is Zinc, Aluminum or Magnesium? 2018 AR190.

 

[ScottS]

Take a few shavings from your anode, burn them over a Bunsen burner and record the wavelength of the light they release. Reference against the wavelength of zinc, aluminum, and magnesium.

Or, bring the shavings down to your local mass spectrometer?

Only other idea is to take a picture of your anode and compare it to other ones online. But that isn’t very scientific…

 

[FX195]

My 2018 has been always in saltwater, original anode still looks good, 175hrs

 

[Croker]

Definanly change it if your going into salt water it takes no more then 3 mins and will potentailly save you a fortune in maintnece costs and corrosion damage. Chuck a Zinc anode on it and replace it onces it starts to break down. Our boat lives in salt water for 2-3 months per year and we often replace the 200-300g block once during its time in the water.